Softball team advances to SEC Tournament title game

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From combined reports

BATON ROUGE, La. | Alabama got home runs from Charlotte Morgan and Whitney Larsen and a three-run seventh inning to knock off LSU 7-4 at Tiger Park on Friday night to advance to the SEC Championship Game.

The second-seeded Crimson Tide (51-5) will take on top-seed Florida (61-2) today at 12:30 p.m. on Fox Sports. The Gators have not lost since dropping the opening game of a doubleheader on March 12 to the Tide in Tuscaloosa. UF has won 34 straight games.

Morgan (15-2) earned the win, allowing three runs on five hits with four strikeouts. She also went 1-for-1 at the plate with a two-run home run in the third inning and three walks, including two intentional passes.

Kelsi Dunne earned her fourth save of the season, pitching the final 11⁄3 innings with two strikeouts, including the final out of the sixth and seventh inning.

Jordan Praytor paced the Tide’s eight-hit attack, going 3-for-3 with a RBI double. Dani Woods and Larsen also had an RBI for Alabama.

Cody Trahan (18-5) started in the circle and lasted 22⁄3 innings before being lifted in place of Tiffany Garcia. Garcia allowed five runs — four earned — on four hits with five walks.

LSU got to Morgan in the top of the third inning on Shannon Stein’s two-strike RBI single to right field. Jazz Jackson came around to score on the play after drawing a one-out walk. Morgan worked out of a two-on, one-out jam by getting Rachel Mitchell to ground back to the pitcher and Quinlan Duhon to strikeout.

Morgan hit a two-run home run to put the Tide on top, 2-1. It was her 16th home run of the season and RBI 67 and 68.

The Tide extended the lead to 3-1 in the bottom of the fourth inning on Larsen’s solo home run down the left field line and later took a 4-1 lead.

Duhon homered in the sixth and with two outs in the inning, Erika Sluss cut the lead to one run, 4-3, with a single.

Alabama struck back as Brittany Rogers led off the inning with a single to center field that extended her hitting streak to nine games. Praytor then delivered a RBI double.

Later, Woods singled to plate a run with the Tide’s seventh run scoring on a wild pitch.



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